I find that my side dishes have become very routine. Roasted potatoes, roasted vegetables, salad etc… I’ll often throw in all the seasonal vegetables to provide some variety to both myself and my guests. I realized however how beautiful it is to highlight just one vegetable. For example, whole roasted cauliflowers have become a really popular side dish at many restaurants. Who would of thought cauliflower could be SO delicious all on its own. Ok… maybe with the help of a sauce or two. The cauliflower however, remains the star. So as fall has arrived, instead of doing the same old roasted butternut squash, I wanted to celebrate the deliciously sweet and nutritious carrot! It has a large dose of vitamin A that will help keep your eyes and skin youthful. A little bit of spice and a handful of fresh herbs will make carrots the star side dish at your next meal.

This pasta dish is a weeknight staple year round in my house. It is so simple and quick to throw together for dinner and to eat leftover throughout the week. It has become a favourite amongst family and friends! Cherry tomatoes get cooked down in the oven with some extra virgin olive oil, spices and garlic until they are bursting and incredibly sweet! A fresh spinach pesto adds a hearty dose of greens and healthy fats. Whats best is you can add almost any cooked vegetable (try eggplant, zucchini or steamed broccoli) and for you meat lovers, you can put in your favourite organic gluten free sausage. It is really versatile but most importantly SO delicious!

I use a mixture of zucchini noodles and brown rice noodles for this dish. Because it is vegan, having zucchini noodles on their own is often not filling enough. I also love using buckwheat or bean noodles for added protein. I hope you love this as much as I do! I’m off to Croatia, so I’ll be posting as soon as I return. Can’t wait to for new food inspiration. I’ll bring home as many recipes as I can!

Pesto Ingredients:

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.2. In a roasting pan, coat cherry tomatoes in olive oil, garlic, oregano, chilli flakes, salt and pepper. Allow to cook for an hour or until cooked down and bursting.3. While the tomatoes are cooking toast your pine nuts in a dry sauce pan over medium heat until the oils begin to release. Set aside.4. Prepare your pesto by adding basil, pine nuts, spinach, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and garlic into the food processor container. Pulse until a paste forms. Slowly add in your olive oil while processing. Taste and season more if necessary.5. When the tomatoes are almost finished cooking, cook your pasta according to directions. Drain and place back in the pot you cooked it in. Over low heat, toss with zucchini noodles (optional), pesto (add it slowly, you may not need it all) and half of the tomatoes. Break into the tomatoes! You want the juice from the tomatoes to coat the noodles with the pesto.6. Serve in a bowl. Garnish with more tomatoes, pine nuts and a spoonful of pesto. Bon appetit!

I’ve been making these oven roasted chickpeas for years now. They are the perfect fix for that crunchy salty craving that will allow you to keep your kitchen chip, popcorn and salted peanut free (although who can resist baked kettle chips once in a while). They take on any flavour you want whether it be spicy or sweet and a great for noshing on the go. For this recipe, I’ve coated the chickpeas in insanely good for you turmeric, nutritional yeast (aka nooch, very high in vitamin b12), a touch of cayenne (a good metabolism boost), and some good quality extra virgin olive oil and then slowly roasted them in the oven. They have a cheesy spicy flavour (almost like ranch) without any dairy or loads of salt! They’ll keep you full for hours with their high content of protein, fiber, good carbs and loads of vitamins and anti-inflammatory properties from the seasoning.

Turmeric is gaining lots of popularity these days for its long list of benefits. You can drink it in tea or add it to a variety of dishes for its beautiful yellow colour and its mild flavour. It is a main spice in many indian curries or good quality mustards but the root of the spice is often used to make medicine. The raw material in the turmeric called curcumin can help beat stress, depression, sleep deprivation and fight off infections.You can take turmeric supplement or add the spice to your stir-frys, stews and curries; or just make these chickpeas!

One word of advice, use a spoon while mixing the turmeric onto the chickpeas. I used my hands and I looked like Marge Simpson for two days and ruined a perfectly good manicure. You even have to be a little careful when eating them by the handful, I highly recommend a spoon! Although these are perfect on their own, stay tuned for some other Clean Eating Goddess recipes featuring these little crunchy guys. As always, this recipe is gluten, dairy and refined sugar free. It is also vegan! Bon appetit!

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place chickpeas in a medium sized bowl and pat dry with paper towel.2. Season with salt, pepper, turmeric, nutritional yeast, cayenne and olive oil. Toss well until chickpeas are well coated.3. Spread chickpeas on a cookie sheet. Bake for about an hour, tossing every 15 minutes until chickpeas are crunchy! (Note: Depending on your oven, you may need to reduce heat to 350 degrees F halfway through because spices will start to burn before the chickpeas have a chance to completely dehydrate. I also keep the fan on during baking. If you don’t have a fan, bake on conventional or you may need to keep the chickpeas in for longer. I find that the crunch factor really depends on the oven. Keep an eye out when you go to toss!)